Vacuum breaker



Sept. 30, 1941.

W. E. SLOAN VACUUM BREAKER Filed Jan. 7, 1957 fyi. 7

Patented Sept. 30, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE VACUUM nimma William E. Sloan, River Forest, Ill. Application January 7, 1937, serial N.119,44o

3 Claims.

This invention relates to vacuum breakers and has for its object the production of a new and improved vacuum breaker which is more reliable in operation and which is somewhat more sensitive to the discharge of liquid therethrough.

'I'he invention has for a further object to provide a device of the kind described with an air inlet valve having a direct suspension in stable equilibrium from below on a stem aiiixed to the 'pivoted arm. This arrangement for suspending the air valve for movement between its open and closed positions permits the valve to hang in a very nearly horizontal plane when in open position so as to offer the least possible restriction to the inflow of air, as well as permitting the valve to line up with the ilxed seat so as to seat accurately even though the plane of the seat be tipped in any direction by a substantial amount from the preferred horizontal position. This construction also substantially eliminates any slight possibility of sticking of the parts from corrosion and the like, as well as permitting the air intake portion of the vacuum breaker to be made with a lesser over-all height for a purpose to be subsequently explained.

The invention has for a further object to provide a device of the kind described in which there is a less bulky single-arm suspension of the pivoted arm of the vacuum breaker, in order to provide a still less retricted channel for the intake of air.

` The invention has as a further object to provide a vacuum breaker integral with a ilush valve, for an integral device can be produced more economically than two separate devices, can be more conveniently handled and can be more compactly installed.

Features of improvement relating to the integral nature of the flush valve and vacuum 'breaker include the following.

In' order for the single unit to be compactly installed it is advantageous for the air inlet portion of the vacuum breaker to be located directly below the inlet opening into the flush valve. When the single unit casting is produced with the parts in this relative position, the height of the bonnet forming the air inlet portion of the vacuum breaker must be reduced as will be hereinafter described, in order that it can be assembled below the water inlet portion ofthe valve which is integral therewith.

Since the air in let opening is directly below the casting extension forming the water inlet opening of the flush valve, it is a practical impossibility to thread the air inlet opening for the reception of the bonnet supporting member, which also forms the seat for the air valve. In order to overcome this dimculty, a somewhat largeropening is made in the casting directly below the air inlet opening, through which larger opening the tool is passed to thread the air inlet opening, following which the larger opening is threaded and is closed with a suitable plug.

Since the vacuum breaker casting is integral with the valve casting, it becomes feasible to roughly cast a seat for the retarder or check valve disc which normally closes the water inlet opening to the vacuum breaker, and to finish this seat by means of a tool passing into the vacuum breaker casting from the outlet opening thereof. When this is done, however, the lug normally provided to prevent the discharge tube from passing so far into the vacuum breaker as to interfere with the working thereof must be limited in length to permit the passage of the finishing tool through the discharge opening. With this limitation imposed on the length of the stop lug. a small diameter discharge tube'can be inserted without encountering the stop lug, and would sometimes be inserted so far as to interfere with proper operation of the vacuum breaker parts without special provisions. This possibility is entirely overcome by a novel arrangement which consists in including a stop device for a smaller tube in the adapter which is used to adapt the discharge opening for the insertion of a small discharge tube.

The invention has further objects which are more particularly pointed out in the accompanying description.

Referring now to the drawing, comprising Figs. 1 to 4, they show sufilcient views of a combined flush valve and vacuum breaker embodying the features of the invention, to enable the invention to be understood.

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of the integral type flush valve and vacuum breaker;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1:

Fig. 3 is a stop view of the water receiving disc of 1, showing the vacuum relieving holes formed therethrough; and

Fig. 4 is a sectional view showing the discharge opening of the vacuum breaker iitted with a pipe of smaller diameter than the discharge opening, but held in place by the combined adapter and limiting stop.

Like numerals refer to like parts throughout the several iigures.

This application is a continuation in part of vacuum breaker casing la. The flush valve casing I is provided with a capmember 2 which is threaded into the casing.- There is a water inlet 3 threaded to receive a connection to the source of supply. The flush valve casing I is connected with the vacuum breaker casing Ia by the outlet opening I and the vacuum breaker casing has the discharge opening l with whichis connected a discharge pipe la. I f

It will be understood that the flush valve shown herein is for the purpose of fi closet bowl, a urinal or some other plumbing receptacle to which flushing water is supplied by way of the vacuum breaker through the discharge opening I, flushing water being received through the inlet opening 3, and that the pur` pose of the vacuumbreaker is to act as a retarder of the back flow of both water and air in the event of a drop of pressure in the supply line below atmospheric pressure, as well as to admit air freely to the interior of the vacuum breaker and thereby prevent water from' being syphoned from'. the receptacle back into the the supply line.

'I'he movable assembly of the ilush valve is designated generally by the numeral I, while the valve seat is designated 1. The flush valve may be of any desired construction, such as that shown in my prior Patent No. 2,016,396, issued October 8, 1935. In the particular construction shown, when vthe handle l is actuated, the actuating member 9 is moved inwardly and engages the Vstem Il ofy an auxiliary valve, relieving the pressure in the chamber above the movable assembly and permittingthe valve to be pushed open by the pressure inthe supply pipe, where-` upon water flows through the flush valve until the valve closes, after the auxiliary relief valve thereof has seated to permit the pressure to be built up in the control chamber above the moving assemblyto again seat'the assembly on the seat 1. The flow of water which takes place during the time the nush valve is open is utilized to flush the associated receptacle. and brings into operation the vacuum breaker.

,Referring now particularly to the vacuum breaker portion of the disclosure, the air valve is indicated generally by the numeral II, while the water receiving or retarding member which retards the back flow of air and water is indicated at I2. These two devices are supported on the pivoted arm I3, which in turn is pivoted on th pins Il and I5. as shown bestin Fig. 2. r

'Ihe air valve II is composed of the central hollow stud is, which is provided with a shoulder against which the metal `washer 2l lies to hold the metal reinforced seating washer 2| nrmly'in place against the weight member 22, the entire assembly being held together by virtue of the threaded connection between the hollow stud Il and the weighted member 22. The member 22 is ushingal supporting casting I l. which supports the protecting bonnet Il, has a machined seat with which the seating member 2I cooperates to seal the air inlet opening when the vacuum breaker is actuated to its alternate position during the flow of water through the vacuum breaker. The

casting It has a. large opening therethrough,

through which air may enter after passing below the edge of the bonnet Il. The bonnet Il is supported by a relatively slender bridge which is integral with the casting IB and which is secured at diametrically Opposite edges to the casting. v

Since the lcasting does not guide the air valve,

the casting and bonnet may be made. shorter and more compact to enable the assembly to be introduced under the inlet extension 3.

In order to support and guide the air valve II from within the body of the vacuum breaker, so as to enable the over all height of the air inlet portion to be kept to a minimum, as well as to provide an air valve which will operate with a minimum of friction and seat accurately. the

support member I3 is provided with anintegral stud 23 which enters the hollow stud Is of the air valve I I and supports the air valve on the rounded end of the stud 23.

The pivot point of the lever I3 is preferably substantially on a line beteween the fixed.seat ing surfaces of the air inlet valve and the retarder, in order that the thrusts be directed at substantiallyV maximum leverage. With the location of the pivot point thus fixed, it is necessary to lower the lever arm proper considerably be-` low the pivot point in order vto allow room for supporting the air valve and the retarder disc bers being the axial, hollow pivot member, while provided with sumcient thickness that its weightA is sufficient to overbalance the weight of the opposite end of the arm and cause the device to be held by gravity in the normal position shown in the drawing. in which position the retarding member I2 lies snugly against the seat formed around the lower part of the orince l, which serves as an outletfor the valve andas an inlet for the vacuum breaker. The bonnet vent iniurious water hammer in the event thatv normal supplypressure is suddenly restored. Without this provision, the water, on dropping entirely out of the upper end of a long vertical riser, may leave a substantial vacuum into which' the water can rush uncushioned upon the restoration of pressure.

Since the air inlet opening to the vacuum breaker in which the bonnet support II is threadedv lies directly, below and in line with the water inlet opening 2 of the casting, the water' inlet extension is so located as to make it a practical impossibility to drill and thread the air inlet opening from above. To meet this condition, a working opening in the bottom of the vacuum breaker is made directly below the air inlet opening. through which the air inlet opening can be threaded. Thisworking opening is made somewhat larger than the air inlet opening for this purpose, and is subsequently threaded and closed by the plug 25, provided with a sunken portion to enable it to be turned into place by -a suitable tool.

In operation, when water discharged from the flush valve starts to flow through the vacuum breaker on its way to the receptacle, the action of the Water on the retarding member I2 moves this member downwardly, rotating the lever arm I3 in a counter-clockwise direction, as seen in Fig. l, to the limit of its movement, the water impinging upon and being diverted by the retarder member I2. It is to be noted that the body of the Vacuum breaker is substantially larger than the member I2 so as to allow the water to ilow around the member after striking it. The movable part ofthe vacuum breaker is thereby kept in actuated position as long as any substantial fiow is taking place, as the over-balance of the parts in favor of the normal position is relatively slight, and complete advantage is taken of the pushing effect of the water striking against the member I2.

When the discharge flow starts as previously mentioned and the pivoted arm I3 is caused to assume its alternate position, the valve II is brought against the seat, which is preferably machined, at the lower end of the casing I6, the contact between this seat and the seating member 2I completely closing the air inlet opening. It is to be noted that the vpoint of contact between the end of the stud 23 and the end of the blind hole in the hollow stud I9 of the air valve is now within the casting I8, and above and beyond the seating surface. This arrangement enables the valve I I to be accurately and practically frictionlessly aligned with the fixed seat, which is not the case when the support point is on the other side of the air valve. In the arrangement shown, the air valve is in effect pulled shut by virtue of the location of the point of contact between it and the stud 23, as contrasted with being pushed shut if the air valve is supported from below. This arrangement, it will be understood is of particular utility in a vacuum breaker, for the amount of thrust available for the closing of the air valve is somewhat limited. Moreover, the air valve must close reliably in order to prevent the un"- desirable spilling of water through the air inlet opening.

In the event that the opening into the receptacle is small or becomes partly clogged, causing a pressure greater than atmospheric pressure to build up, such augmented pressure acts against the bottom of the air valve II and thereby aids in maintaining the air valve securely seated against the escape of water.

When the iiush valve closes, and the flow of water therefore ceases, the lever of the vacuum breaker is free to be propelled by gravity to its normal position, for the air valve I I is sufiiciently heavy to overbalance the weight on the opposite end of the lever. Moreover, the air valve II is vigorously unseated at this time by the outside atmospheric pressure working against the subatmospheric pressure which develops upon the closing of the valve and results from the weight which may conceivably form on the inner surface of the blind hole in the stud I9.

As previously mentioned, the machining of a seat for the retarding member I2 against the portion of the casting defining the common orifice l, is of necessity accomplished through the discharge opening 5 at the lower end of the casting. In order that the tool for performing this machining can be inserted and withdrawnl it is necessary that the length of the limiting stud 29 be kept to a minimum (just suiilcient to prevent a tube of normal diameter from being pushed in beyond the stud). This consideration does not apply, of course, when the vacuum breaker is produced separately from the valve, this problem being present only when the vacuum breaker and the flush valve make use of an integral casting. In order to overcome this diiiiculty, a combined adapter and stop for a tube of smaller diameter has been developed, as illustrated in Fig. 4.

In Fig. 4, the outlet opening I of the casting I is provided with a discharge tube 30 of smaller diameter than the discharge tube Ia of Fig. 1, and this smaller pipe is held snugly in place and is prevented from being inserted too far into the casting by the combined adapter and stop 3|. This combination unit is composed of a metallic element 32 and a molded rubber element 33, the

rubber being vulcanized to the metal element to form a single unit. The metal element 32 is substantially a short tube with the lower end thereof brought out to form a horizontal ledge all around the main body of the tube, while the upper end of the tube is drawn in to form an internal ledge which serves to limit the tube 30 from being pushed so far within the casting that it interferes with the operation of the vacuum breaker.

The rubber portion 33 is molded within the tubular portion of the element 32 and is of such internal diameter as to allow the tube 30 to iit snugly. In addition, the rubber portion 33 follows around the bottom ledge of the member 32 so as to form a continuous water-tight sealing gasket. When the clamp nut 38 is drawn into place, the gasket portion of the rubber element 33 is constricted vertically and thereby caused to expand horizontally in the usual manner to hold the tube 30 firmly in place and to seal the outle against the loss of water.

I claim:

1. A seating member for a valve, comprising a main disc, a clamping disc, and a seating disc of resilient material disposed between the first mentioned discs, each of said discs having a central hole therethrough, and a clamping stud extending through said holes to hold the discs together, said clamping disc being smaller in diameter than said seating disc so as to leave an annular seating surface exposed on one side of the seating disc, there being a blind hole formed longitudinally in the clamping stud entering the end thereof from the non-seating side of the assembly and ending substantially beyond the said exposed seating surface of the seating disc.

2. In a vacuum breaker including a relief valve I and a retarder disc mounted on opposite ends of a pivoted lever, a xed seating surface .for the retarder disc and a xed seating surface for the relief valve in substantial augment with one another, the pivot point for said lever being located substantially in the same plane as the said seating surfaces, said lever comprising a horizontal pivot member disposed substantially at right angles to a line passing through the centers of the two seating surfaces, a horizontal lever member l0 completed.

sion oi the casing, the method oi' threading air inlet opening of the vacuum breaker portion oi' the casing which includes providing a working I openinginthecasingontheoppositesideoithe air inlet opening trom the liquid inlet opening, in forming the threads in the air inlet` opening by meaneoiathreadingtoolpassingthroughthe working opening, and in closing the working opening after the threadingoperation has been WILLIAM ESLOAN. 

